Body
Everyone has a unique body. And each body is valuable just the way it is. Your body image begins to form in early childhood, and a healthy body image will support a child’s healthy growth. In this section, we’ve compiled tips, videos and exercises to practise body positivity skills together.
The Fullness Meter will help you to recognize how full you are
How do you practice recognizing the feeling of fullness with your child? The Fullness Meter shows the appropriate amount of food for the child and may help to practise recognizing the feeling of fullness.
Making your own Fullness Meter
To make your own Fullness Meter look at the attached picture. Make a hole at both ends of the vertical line. Thread a small Hama bead or similar onto a string and place the string on the line. Move the bead along the line to show how hungry you are.
Practise together
- Talk about what it means to be ‘starving’ or feel too full.
- Think together what an appropriate portion is that doesn’t make you feel bad.
- What happens if you start to feel like you’re ‘starving’? Will you then binge on too much food?
- If you eat regularly, will it then be easier to stop eating?
- What could you do when you feel like taking more food, even if you’ve already eaten plenty? Will it help if you wait for a while: if you count to 30 or drink a glass of water, for example?
- If the child tends to eat too much, talk about emotional eating. What can you do when you feel like eating even though you’re not hungry? What could you do instead? List together fun things you could do instead of eating.
- Children like familiar everyday agreements. Decide together how you will practise recognizing the feeling of fullness and remember to encourage each other.